Graham (NYSE:GHM) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Graham shares opened higher, rising from a prior close of $83.62 to $87.01 before later trading near $83.23 on volume of 22,673 shares.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: two analysts rate Graham a Buy and three rate it Hold, producing an average Hold rating and a consensus price target of $132.50.
• Graham reported a strong quarter, with earnings of $0.49 per share versus the $0.27 estimate and revenue of $71.34 million, up 28.6% year over year; institutional investors own 69.46% of the stock.

Graham Corporation (NYSE:GHM - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $83.62, but opened at $87.01. Graham shares last traded at $83.2260, with a volume of 22,673 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GHM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Graham to $130.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Graham from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Northland Securities increased their price target on shares of Graham from $111.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Graham from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Graham from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $132.50.

Graham Stock Down 1.0%

The firm has a market capitalization of $971.95 million, a PE ratio of 80.05 and a beta of 1.05. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $98.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $97.05.

Graham (NYSE:GHM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.22. Graham had a return on equity of 11.09% and a net margin of 4.53%.The firm had revenue of $71.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $65.60 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 28.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Graham Corporation will post 1.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Graham

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Westport Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Graham in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $171,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Graham during the 2nd quarter valued at about $52,000. Silvant Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Graham during the 2nd quarter valued at about $101,000. Fifth Third Bancorp bought a new position in shares of Graham in the 1st quarter worth approximately $69,000. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI purchased a new position in shares of Graham in the second quarter worth approximately $1,456,000. Institutional investors own 69.46% of the company's stock.

About Graham

Graham Corporation NYSE: GHM designs and manufactures engineered vacuum and heat-transfer equipment for industrial, defense and aerospace applications. Its products include ejectors, vacuum systems, surface condensers, heat exchangers, feedwater heaters and other specialized thermal-management equipment.

The company serves customers in the U.S. Navy and other defense markets, as well as power generation, chemical processing, refining and related industries. Graham's equipment is used in applications that require steam, heat transfer, condensation or controlled vacuum conditions, including marine propulsion and industrial process systems.

Founded in 1936 and headquartered in Batavia, New York, Graham has historically supplied equipment to customers in the United States and international markets.

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